Enjoying the Race!

This is a post I have been putting off for some time now. I’ve started it twice before and spent countless hours trying to write it in my head. My Grandmother, Claire Alvis Phipps, was an amazing lady. She passed away two weeks ago at the age of 97. I so wish I could share all of who she was with you, but there aren’t enough words.

As a kid, I was never close to her, she and Grandpa lived far away and we usually saw them 4 times a year. Honestly, I dreaded their visits. She’d check under my bed to make sure it was orderly, (which it never was), she’d remind me about manners and the importance of staying ‘trim’. I felt she was so ‘formal’, so ‘proper’ , and I was such a mess!

Just after I had my first baby she came to live with my mother, and together they bought the house directly behind mine. For the first time, I really got to know her, and she got to know me. She was formal, and she was proper, but she was also kind, generous and fun. We read a lot of the same books, shared recipes, grew roses, worked crafts, played cards, talked politics and enjoyed my kids. And my kids LOVED her! She especially loved reading to them. We all miss her greatly. I feel so fortunate that we had the past 12 years to know one another, she has greatly impacted the lady I’ve become.

She was an amazing cook, and in her memory I’d like to share her recipe for banana bread. She made this recipe almost every week, I don’t even like bananas, but I’ve loved this bread since I was a kid, particularly cold, with a pat of butter!

It’s a super simple recipe. Gather the ingredients,

Mix them together, and bake!

It is simply delicious.

Now my house smells like Gran’s,

Claire

Gran’s Banana Bread

3C Flour

3/4t Salt

1t baking soda

2C Sugar

1t cinnamon

1c chopped pecans or walnuts

3 eggs, beaten

1C vegetable Oil

2C mashed bananas, about 5 reg bananas

1 (8oz) can crushed pineapple

2t Vanilla

Pre-heat oven at 350, grease 2 loaf pans.

Combine the flour, salt, baking soda, sugar and cinnamon in a large bowl. Stir in nuts. In a second large bowl, combine eggs, oil, bananas, pineapple and vanilla. Add the dry ingredients in thirds, to the wet ingredients and stir to combine. Pour into pans and bake for 1hour and 10min. When cool, store tightly wrapped, in the refrigerator. Enjoy!

Thanks so much for sharing this Claire. It was great to talk with you last week but I just couldn’t get the words out to say anything about your Gran. She was one person I will always remember. I throughly enjoyed the times we got to chat especially at your home for Thanksgiving the year ya’ll were kind enough to have a wayward knitter in for turkey.

What a way to celebrate a wonderful Southern lady’s life by sharing her recipes! Blessings to you, Mr. Fix It, Dr. Caroline, Andy and Martha!!!

Thanks so much for sharing this Claire. It was great to talk with you last week but I just couldn’t get the words out to say anything about your Gran. She was one person I will always remember. I throughly enjoyed the times we got to chat especially at your home for Thanksgiving the year ya’ll were kind enough to have a wayward knitter in for turkey. That sure was fun.

What a way to celebrate a wonderful Southern lady’s life by sharing her recipes! Blessings to you, Mr. Fix It, Dr. Caroline, Andy and Martha!!!

I am so sorry for your loss. I just spent 10 days with my daughter and her daughter. You have given me much to think about. Someday I hope my granddaughter will remember me with the love and admiration you had for your Gran. And we all get to know your Gran a little thru her recipe! Thank you for sharing. She was blessed to have you too!

Your Gran and your mom have always given us banana nut bread for Christmas (and a loaf without nuts for me because I’m allergic to tree nuts) since they moved in next to us. Your Gran was one of the sweetest ladies I have ever known and I miss her, too. I’m glad you and also your kids got to know her in her later years. Grandmothers, and great-grandmothers, are very special.

I just came across the recipe for Banana bread and chose to include it with my other recipes for Banana bread as the secret ingredient is pineapple. I will also copy for my sister who is always making Banana bread. This is a delightful recipe ,thanks to your Gramma.